You Promised
by Vires-Strength
Summary: James has been attacked,Lily is left waiting to see if he survives. Will he keep his promise to her? J/L,Remus,Sirius,after Hogwarts,T for language
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first fic adn un-beta'ed so I appologize for any mistakes. Ummmm...Oh, yeah! I don't own the HP books or any of the characters unless you don't recognize them. Sorry if anyone's done a similar story, I just thought I'd put something up before I leave for the military.**

"You _promised_! You gave me your word, you son of a bitch! You told me you'd never leave me! You said I wouldn't be alone anymore! Don't you lie to me! You rotten _bastard_, don't you dare leave me! You have to wake up! _Please_!! JAMES!!" Her screams ripped through the halls of the suddenly silent hospital, freezing the blood of those who heard them with her pure desolation.

Sirius Black struggled to keep his hold on Lily Evans as she fought his grip. They, along with Remus Lupin and dozens of standers-by, watched in horror as James Potter's bloody body was taken into St. Mungo's emergency room. As soon as the doors closed behind him, Sirius felt her body go limp in exhaustion and slowly led her to the nearest chair, careless of whose it was.

"Lily," he sighed, frustrated as she avoided his eyes, "please look at me." She didn't move and he tapped her chin, hoping for her to glare at him like usual. Instead he was met with the dead ashes of her normal fiery gaze. "What happened, Lils? How'd…Why is he…" Sirius dropped his head, unable to find words for how he'd last seen the man who was as good as a brother to him. "Prongs." James had been pale, too pale. There was blood running down his face and chest, evidence of it still on Lily's own clothing. Come to think of it, there was probably blood on his, too.

The hand on his shoulder startled him. He looked up as Remus knelt next to him, reaching for Lily's hands. "Lily, you have to tell us what happened. Who did this to James?" Remus shared a disturbed glance with Sirius as Lily began shaking uncontrollably and fell sobbing into his arms. "Lils?"

It took a moment before either of them could understand a word of what she was saying through the tears. She was so close to whispering that they had to lean forward in order to hear her. "I don't know. I don't know! I don't _know_! I went over to the flat to meet him for lunch and I found him unconscious in the kitchen. Merlin, there was so much _blood_. It was everywhere! And he was just lying there in the middle of it not moving …I, uh, I touched the medallion like he told me about when we graduated Hogwarts and then …I can't remember!" Lily started sobbing again but they didn't need her to tell them what happened after that.

In their sixth year, after a close call during Remus' "time of the month", as Sirius liked to call it, the Marauders made a set of medallions. Once the center was touched with a wand, all of them would glow, letting the other boys know that there was an emergency and with who. They had both arrived at the flat that the three boys shared to find Lily's shaking form over James, trying to stop the bleeding. When they couldn't get the shocked girl to respond to them, they side-apparated both her and their pseudo-brother to St. Mungo's immediately. Lily had remained frozen until the healers started to wheel the gurney holding James' limp form away. Her screams would never be forgotten by either of the two Marauders.

"He can't die. James promised that he'd always take care of me. He's all I have left." Sirius sat in the seat next to Lily as she continued to cry and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, trying to comfort her despite his own fears about his friend's condition.

"Prongs is going to be okay, Lilyflower. He's a fighter and bloody stubborn if nothing else. No matter what, he will always fight to come back to you. Hell, the git wouldn't give up even when you hated him. He loves you, Lils. He's not going to let a little scratch keep him from you." A small grin fought its way through her tears along with a weak giggle. "See there, the world's lookin' brighter already." She gave a weak push against his side and slowly let go of Remus. "Hey, Moony, am I right? Our boy isn't gonna let go of a woman like this."

Remus smiles at Lily, rolling his eyes at Sirius' actions. "Hate to admit it, but the man's right. (_Hey!_) Prongs would go through hell for you. You're stuck with him and, as a result, us. You're not alone, Lily. The Marauders are your family now."

Lily smiled fondly at the two men in front of her. Not for the first time, she marveled at the bond between them and felt blessed to be included. But, without James, it still had an empty feeling. As the three friends settled in, they had nothing left to do but wait.

TBC.

**The main focus of this will be on the people, but I will tell what happened to James. It won't be long, only a couple chapters. Please review! Let me know if you have any advice. HELP ME!!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Still un-beta'ed. Still don't own HP. Still scared shitless to actually be posting this.**

_**Flashback**_

_It was the end of seventh year, a few months before graduation, that she got the letter. The second letter that would turn her world upside-down (just not in the good way that her Hogwarts letter had). The owls arrived at breakfast like always, gliding in gracefully to deliver the post to unsuspecting students. She wasn't the only one to freeze after reading her mail, wasn't the only one to run out of the Great Hall to mourn her loss in peace. But she was the one he followed._

_James found Lily in the Head's common room staring silently into the fire, lost in her grief. As he sat next to her, she slowly turned to look at him, studying him. "Lily?" Her eyes were starting to unnerve him, as if she was seeing strait through to his soul. "Lils, tell me what I can do. Tell me how to make this better."_

_Something shifted in her gaze and James could only watch helplessly as her tears began to fall. "Stay with me…please. I don't want to be alone. I can't…Just don't leave me." The sheer extent of emotion in her voice startled him and he couldn't stop himself from pulling her into his arms._

_While Lily continued to sob into his shoulder, James held her tighter, whispering in her ear, "I won't. I give you my word, Lily, I won't leave you. Even if I can't be next to you, you'll always have me. Always, my love."_

_**End Flashback**_

* * *

Lily Evans was brought back to the present as the men on either side of her stood up. It was only then that she noticed the healer approaching them from the direction in which James had been taken. Remus had to physically hold back Sirius in order to stop him from attacking the obviously exhausted healer for information on their best mate.

"I assume you're all here for James Potter?" At the assenting nods, the man gave a tired sigh. "Your friend is going to be alright, eventually. Whoever did this to him caused a lot of major damage. If you hadn't found him when you did…" he didn't need to voice what would've happened as everyone there was painfully aware of the possibilities. "We're going to have Mr. Potter stay here for a few days until we know we've fixed everything. He's been moved to recovery but I'm only supposed to allow family in to see him."

If she hadn't been stopping herself from doing the same thing, Lily might have laughed at the look on the healer's face as Sirius grabbed the front of his robes. "Look here, you stupid little—(_Padfoot, he just saved Prongs)_—you brilliant, amazing man, we _are_ James' family. If you think you're going to stop us from seeing him—"

Lily walked passed all three of them without looking back; vaguely hoping that Sirius wouldn't kill anyone. She approached the young witch at the reception desk with a smile that she didn't feel. "Excuse me, miss? Could you tell me which room James Potter is in?"

The receptionist took one look at Lily, saw the sadness in her eyes, and with a kind voice told her "Room 324, ma'am. Just down that hall to your left." Lily gave her thanks to the woman and wandered down the hall she was pointed towards. When she reached the room she slowly opened the door, afraid of what she might find.

_...caused a lot of major damage._ _If you hadn't found him when you did…_

Resting on the room's sole bed was James, her James. If not for the pale color of his skin and the bandages he looked calm enough to be sleeping, just like all the times he had come in from a late quidditch practice and crashed on the common room couch. Lily sat in the chair next to James' bed and simply watched his chest rise and fall with each breath he took, finally able to relax now that she knew he was alive.

* * *

"I wasn't going to strangle him, Moony. Maybe just rough the man up a bit, you kn…" Sirius fell silent at the look Remus sent him as they came to the room the healer had eventually pointed them to. A small grin tugged at the mouths of both men as they took in the picture of Lily Evans asleep with her head resting on James Potter. "Damn, even asleep and he still manages to get the girls. How does he—"

"Sirius." Remus shot another glare at his friend as he pulled the extra blanket from the foot of the bed, wrapping it around Lily. "I've seen the girls that came to the infirmary after you screwed up some prank or another. You have no right to talk." Rolling his eyes at Sirius' guilty but satisfied grin, he pushed him into the hall as they both took up their posts, guarding their brother and friend until he decided to wake.

_I won't leave you. Even if I can't be next to you, you'll always have me._

**So, it might not be that good, but I felt like I had to post something (even at 4am). Let me know what you think**


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm SO SORRY!! We had people staying at our house and i have to get ready to move, so this took me awhile to get up. I'm working on getting another chapter up tonight (this morning, really). **

_James Potter rushed around the flat, trying to organize the mess before Lily arrived for lunch. He had told her they were going to go out, but he really wanted to surprise her by cooking it himself. As James picked up yet another unused dung-bomb, _Padfoot has got to learn to put his shit away, _there was a quiet, hesitant knock at the door. "Give me a minute, Lily. I've just got to–"_

"_Expecting someone, Potter? I think you're gonna be running a little bit late." James froze, slowly turning around to face one of the many men he'd hoped he would never see again. "Don't I get a hello? Did you miss me?"_

"_Can't say I did, Malfoy? How you been? Horrible, I hope."_ _As Malfoy let out a cold laugh, James moved slowly toward were his wand rested by the stove. "Voldemort treating you well?"_

"_He is actually," Malfoy said as he let out a hissing laugh. "Can't I mind an excuse to come curse your ass to oblivion." A flash blew past James, sending his wand even further across the kitchen. He looked into Malfoy's eyes, barely holding in a shiver at the consuming darkness and hatred residing in them. "Really, Potter, you're one of us. Even you should appreciate what we are doing for the wizarding community, getting rid of the filth. Filth like...Evans."_

_As he looked back on it later, James realized that attacking an armed wizard with nothing more than your own fists is probably a bad idea. And yet, at the time... "You bloody _bastard! _She's not _filth!_" He didn't register the curse that hit him in the gut, twice, but the one to the head was pretty hard to miss._

"_One day, Potter, you will realize that you picked the wrong side. You'll be begging the Dark Lord to forgive you." Without waiting for a response, Malfoy apparated on the spot, grinning like it was his own personal holiday._

_James sank against the counter, trying to support his own weight. Watching his own blood soak the kitchen floor, his only thought being thankful that Lily hadn't been hurt. The squeak of the front door opening was a dull echo in the back of his mind. Only vaguely did he recognize the sound of a woman's screams._ _But there was no mistaking those eyes, filled with terror though they were. "Lily..."_

"Lily..." A warm, gentle hand gripped his own. Distant sounds of what could only be a hospital, he latched onto the most beautiful voice he'd ever heard.

"Sirius, get the healer! James, can you hear me?"

"Lils..."

**Don't forget to let me know what you think. I'll update soon, promise.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Here's the next piece. Enjoy!**

It had been three days since Lily had found James in the apartment. Three days since Sirius and Remus had taken them to St. Mungo's. Three days of tense, never-ending waiting. Remus had taken to reading the yellowing newspapers in the waiting rooms. Sirius had become a fast favorite among the nurses. And Lily remained in the chair next to James' bed, waiting for him to wake.

In the process of _re_counting the bricks in the wall, she felt a small movement coming from bed. As she watched James struggle to open his eyes, Remus and Sirius come to stand behind her, both also aware of the change. The seconds seemed to stretch on before, finally, "Lily..."

Lily fought against the giddy feeling she was getting, struggling to remain calm. "Sirius, get the healer! James, can you hear me?" A small but content smile spread across James' face, causing a matching one to grow on Lily and Remus.

"Lils..." His voice was raw and quiet from disuse, but still held the same strength that seemed to follow James around wherever he went. "You look worried. Didn't think I was going to leave, did you? A Marauder never breaks their promise." Frowning at the tear tracks on Lily's cheek, he turned to look at Remus. "Moony, how long's it been? Where am I?"

"Mr. Potter, you are at St. Mungo's and damn lucky to be alive." All eyes veered to the healer striding into the room, Sirius trailing behind, ironically enough, like a puppy. "I suppose it would be a waste of time to ask how you're feeling?"

"I'm fine." Ignoring the multiple eye rolls, James stared defiantly back at the healer. "When can I get out of here?" There was a silent pause before all three Marauders burst into fits of laughter. Lily gave a long-suffering sigh before reaching out and smacking Remus and James. "Hey! Why didn't you hit Padfoot?"

"Because he's too far away." Sirius gave her a smirk before the healer hit him upside the head. "Thank you, Max." Remus smirked at his pouting friend, glad for the semi-return to normal, before turning back to James with a questioning look.

"Who did this, Prongs? And why?" A shadow fell over James' eyes before he turned his gaze to the opposite wall. Knowing better than to rush his friend, Remus simply waited for him to speak first. After sharing a glance with Sirius, they both faced the healer. No words needed to be spoken for the man to get the hint and leave, making the excuse of seeing other patients. "Padfoot, close the door."

Once the latch clicked, they all turned expectantly to James who spoke in an ice cold, angry voice, "Smith was wrong. Malfoy has gone to the other side. He said that I should understand their reasons, that I should have joined them." Silence fell again as Sirius shook with rage to the point of knocking over the medical supplies next to him. "Until I'm out of here, I want one of you to stay with Lily at all times."

"James, I don't need–," Remus covered Lily's mouth with his hand, as both he and Sirius nodded their understanding to James. Padfoot put a comforting hand on his brother's shoulder, a confident grin in place.

"Don't worry about her, mate. We'll take care of your girl." James smirked at the glare his friends were getting before nodding towards the door. Both men left without words and, finally, James Potter was left alone with Lily Evans.

You know that "talk" most couples avoid, about feelings and where the relationship is going? Well…James had a few things he wanted to say and he was going to make sure that Lily heard them.

**Thank you to everyone who's been reviewing or getting the story alerts, it means a lot to me. If I don't finish the story tonight, it might be a week or so because I've got a reunion I've got to go to.(oh fuckin' joy) :P Hope you here from me soon!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry it took so long. If it seems rushed, it's because I just got back from New England and I leave for the Air Force tomorrow. Here's the next chapter.**

There was a moment of silence before Lily turned to James with a defiant look in her eyes

There was a moment of silence before Lily turned to James with a defiant look in her eyes. Had he not already been leaning back in his bed, James more than likely would have taken a step backwards. "James Potter, if you ever scare me like that again, I will hunt you down and kill you myself. You promised me, James. Don't go back on your word now. Not when the world is dark enough already."

By the time she had finished speaking, Lily had tears running down her face. James silently moved over on the bed, allowing her enough room to join him. Once she had herself settled against his side, James took a deep breath and began to talk.

"Lillian Evans, I will never go back on my word to you. I meant it when I said that I'd always be there for you. You've heard my say this numerous times, but I love you, Lily. Nothing can take me away now that I finally have you in my life. You don't want to hear this, but, Lils, I can't tell you how happy I am that it was me that Malfoy attacked, not you. Without you…Believe me when I tell you that I will always fight to protect you. And, if I fail, I'll just have Padfoot and Mooney keep up the job."

Again there was silence as James let Lily, _his_ Lily, process what he had just said. When her response came, it was slow and unsure, as of she didn't want to give herself false hope. "You love me?" James only nodded in response. "And you'll always protect me?" Another nod. "Why do you have Remus and Sirius guarding me from, James? What's so bad that you don't trust me to protect myself?"

From the look in her eyes, James could tell there was no way that he could get off the hook without answering the question. Why couldn't he protect her from things like this? What had she done to deserve evil men like Malfoy hating her in a way most people would never comprehend? The answer; nothing. Zip, zilch, nada. She had been born, had become a witch, and because of who she was, they despised her. No logic to it whatsoever. And that was what he told her.

Lily let out a sigh and leaned closer into James' side. "There are evils in the world that not even you can change, James Potter. I can't change the way that they think and neither can you. Just accept it and move on. Malfoy and men as coldhearted as he is will always want to kill me. You can't stop them all."

"I can try." The words were spoken with such conviction that Lily didn't even bother trying to get through to him. Sirius was right; James was, above all, stubborn. When his mind was set on something, there was no one in the world who could change it, not even her.

Quiet fell once again fell as both were trapped in their own thoughts. They only became aware of their surroundings when the door slowly opened and Sirius peered inside. When he saw the serious (no pun intended) look on their faces, he sent James a significant look at Lily's left hand and left to go find one of the nurses to flirt with.

Trying to overcome the sudden feeling of butterflies in his stomach, James pointed toward a coat resting on a nearby chair. "Lily could you look in the right pocket of Padfoot's jacket for me?" At her curious gaze, he only shrugged. "I want to ask you something."

Despite her desire to stay in James' arms, Lily stood and walked to the coat. Reaching inside the pocket, her fingertips touched something hard. Pulling it out, she froze. This was a ring box, no question about it. Every little girl dreamt of the day when a man would kneel in front of her holding a box like this. Slowly, in a daze, she crossed to the bed and looked up at the man laying there. "James, this is… Are you going to… What…"

James couldn't help it, he smiled at her confusion be fore grasping Lily's hand in his own. "This is my promise to you, love. I will always be there for you, protect you, and love you. Lils, could you…will you…Lils, marry me."

**How much do you hate me for this? See ya next time. :D**


	6. Chapter 6

It's mid afternoon at St

It's mid afternoon at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries and multiple events have just occurred. Adriana Emit has given birth to twins. Gregory Reynolds has his sight restored after a spell went awfully wrong. Three wizards are brought in from a quidditch accident. And Sirius Black can be heard throughout half of the building yelling for all to hear, "I CLAIM BEST MAN!!"

Those nearby can see a group of four friends looking happier than anyone has the right to be (in the opinion of the man who's here because his ex-wife wanted to "talk things out"). The couple on the bed has a glow around them, showing everyone the love they had for one another. What they had was special, more than ever with times as they are. True love such as theirs didn't come around often and should be cherished.

James Potter and Lily Evans were the happiest people in the world…For now at least.

**It's a bad ending, and i appologize to everyone, but I have to finish packing. Besides, it's not as if Lily was going to say no.**

**Arrivederci**


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